Apparatus and method for the manufacture of pile fabrics



Dec. 20, 1938 F. M. KAUFMAN 2,

APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF PILE FABRICS Filed Jan. 21, 1938 2 sheetssheet 1 FIG.I

INVENTOQ ATTORNEY.

Dec. 20, 1938. F. M. KAUFMAN APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF FILE FABRICS Filed Jan. 21, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IQVENTQQ.

FP/l/V/l M KAUFMAN BY pa! ATTORNEK m t e 2 .1938

APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR THE MAN- UFACTURE OF PILE FABRICS Frank M. Kaufman, Merlon, Pa, assignor to (lol- -Jins & Aikman Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa.,

a corporation of Delaware Application January 21, 1938, Serial No. 186,067

13 Claims.

My invention relates to an improved process and apparatus for the production of pile fabrics.

This invention contemplates the production of pile fabrics having a relatively high pile; those comprising uncut pile loops of different heights and cut pile tufts, as well as fabrics in which the pile portion consists of high and low uncut loops or low uncut loops and higher cut tufts. It has been a prior practice to weavepile loops and tufts of different heights by the use of transverse wires of different sizes. It is also known, as in my prior patent, No. 2,060,502, to weave low loops and higher tufts on the double plush principle with stationary and shedded sets of longitudinal pile l6 gauges. The former of these prior concepts limits the number of wires of a known gauge or thickness and the number of picks of weft per inch of fabric, and the latter concept results in the use of a substantial number of shedded wires which tend to complicate the shedding operations and fill the reed dents. If, for example, a 56 inch reed of 1600 dents be used, the size of a round shedded wire passing through the dents would be too small to obtain the desired pile height. Flat shedded wires, such as those having a hinge action, are commercially undesirable.

A preferred embodiment of my improved apparatus includes the use of transverse wires and of a single set of shedded longitudinal wires or gauges. My transverse wires may be inserted and withdrawn by conventional pile wire mechanism. In transverse pile wire looms, the wires are inserted in an open shed between the ground warps and the pile warps and are beaten up and bound to the fabric by pile-forming loops. The wires remain in the fabric until they have advanced some distance from the fell of the cloth, and as each wire is advanced forwardly to a predetermined position, it is withdrawn from the fabric and again inserted in the open shed.

According to my invention, the transverse wires may be inserted all from the same side or some from one side of the warp sheds and the others from the opposite side. A set of shedded longitudinal gauges. pass through the reed dents at intervals of several dents for each wire. As the weaving progresses, some of the transverse wires are inserted below the longitudinal wires or gauges and others over the longitudinal wires or gauges, Those transverse pile wires which are equipped with cutters in all cases are inserted and withdrawn over the longitudinal pile gauges. The transverse wires, laying as they do in two planes, may be closely beat up and a great number of so wefts laid per unit length of fabric.

I prefer to use a textile material such as ramie or jute to metal wires for the longitudinal gauges, The longitudinal gauges may have a wind-up means to avoid excessive wear on one portion of the gauges.

It is an object of my invention to provide an apparatus and method for the production of pile fabrics having a relatively great difference in the height of the pile.

It is a further object of my invention to provide 1 an apparatus and a method for the production of pile fabrics having a great number of picks per inch and pile of different heights of loops or different heights of loops and tufts.

It is a further object of my invention to provide a loom having a longitudinal set and a transverse set of pile wires.

It is a further object of my invention to provide two sets of transverse pile wires and an intermediate set of shedded longitudinal gauges. 20

These, as well as other objects of this invention, will be manifest from the following description and illustration of my invention, in which,

Fig. I is a diagrammatic elevational view of a 25 Jacquard loom embodying my improvements.

Fig. II is an isometric view of a portion of a loom provided with transverse wire insertion and withdrawal means on both sides of the loom and intermediate longitudinal positioning gauges ac- 30 cording to my improvements.

Fig, III is a diagrammatic view of a fabric illustrating the wires and gauges in position within the fabric and showing loops of two heights and tufts forming loops higher than the low loops. 35

Referring more particularly to Fig. I'of the drawings, l0 represents the loom frame at the front of which is journalled the usual pin roll or take-up roll I l. Sword I2 is pivoted about center l2a and is oscillated from the usual crank shaft, 40 (not shown) through pitman 13. Sword i2 has mounted thereon lay beam l4 carrying reed l5 and reed cap I6. The pile-forming yarns 64 are shed by Jacquard heddles l1 and I8 which may be raised according to a predetermined Jacquard de- 45 sign by cords i9, 20, passing through the comber board 2| to the Jacquard mechanism, (not shown) and may be lowered by lingoes 22 and 23. Harness frame 24 carries heddles through which the intermediate longitudinal pile wires or gauges 50 25 pass and by which they are shedded so that the transverse wires pass either over or under them, as desired.

Harness frames 26 and 21 manipulate the ground warp threads 28 and 29 which are drawn from a conventional beam or beams of equal or unequal tension (not shown) from whence they are fed to the fabric over roller 30 and ultimately, after passing through the harness mechanism, interlaced with the weft laid by the shuttle 3|.

The longitudinal positioning wires or gauges 25 are drawn from a convenient source of supply such as creels through a reed 32, harness 24, reed ii, to the under-side of wind-up roller 33. Windup roller 33 is driven from the pin roller ll. As the advancement of the gauges 25 is to avoid wear near the fell of the cloth and the resulting breakage therefrom, it is obvious that the rate of advance may be anything desired and that it need notbe the same rate as the rate of weaving.

As hereinbefore stated, I prefer to use a textile longitudinal gauge such as ramie. The roller 33 is Journalled in brackets 34 fastened to the rail 35 and is driven by belt 36 from the pin roll. The transverse wire mechanism 31 is shown diagrammatically in Fig. I as fixed to the loom frame forwardly of the lay and shuttle mechanism, (not shown).

In Fig. II is shown the conventional transverse wire mechanism generally depicted as 31, forwardly of the lay l1 and picking mechanism, (not shown). Duplicate mechanism is shown at both sides of the loom, although it is to be understood that this is not essential. Each transverse wire mechanism comprises a wire carriage 38 and a guide 39 therefor. A wire guide member 40 pivoted on stud 4| is moved through link 42 secured to the guide 40 as at 43 by arm 44 which is controlled by a cam driven from a moving loom part in a known manner.

The wire insertion and withdrawal means operates as the carriage 38 is reciprocated by the intermittent forward motion and reversal of pinion 45 and sheave 46, through cable 41 which is secured to the sheave 46 and to an extension 48 of the carriage 38. The cable passes around sheaves 49 and 50 pivoted at and 52. The wire carriage 38 carries a pivoted latch member 53 which engages in a hole of the head 54 of pile wire 55 as the carriage completes its inward movement. The latch is pressed by the spring 56 against stop 51. On the outward movement of the carriage, the foremost pile wire is withdrawn from the fabric and moves outwardly in guide 40. Guide 40 then pivots about stud 4|. This latter movement disengages latch member 53 and the pile wire head moves under extension 58 of spring pressed plate 59 which is pivoted at 60. Inward movement of the carriage 38 causes the pile wire 55 to be inserted either above or below the longitudinal gauges 25, depending on its shedded position, and the cam 6| then lifts the plate 59 to disengage its extension 58 from the wire 55.

As will be seen from Fig. III, transverse pile wires 55 are inserted above the ground and either above or below the longitudinal gauges 25. In the embodiment shown, one wire is inserted at a time. This may be done simultaneously with the weft 52 or separately. The height and character of the pile, i. e., loop or tuft, are determined by the relative position of the transverse wires and the gauges and the presence or absence of a knife edge 63 at the ends of the transverse wire 55. If desired, all of the cutting wires may be inserted from one side of the loom and the others from the opposite side of the loom.

It will be apparent that various fabric designs may be produced according to my invention and that a fine quality high pickage fabric may be conveniently produced. The substantially verti- 2,141,1k2 Y v cal alignment of pile wires, illustrated in Fig. III,

will result from the beating up of the wires by the reed.

I contemplate the use of ground warp threads of equal or unequal tension to be within the scope of my concept and having described my invention, I claim:

1. In a pile fabric loom, a. reed. having dents, a

- supply of ground warp threads, pile-forming warp yarns, shedding mechanism for both the ground and the pile warps, a set of sheddable longitudinal pile gauges extending through reed dents, shedding means for said longitudinal pile gauges, transverse pile wires and means for inserting and withdrawing some of the transverse wires over the longitudinal gauges and others of the transverse wires under the longitudinal gauges.

2. In a pile fabric loom, a reed having dents, a supply of ground warp threads, pile-forming warp yarns, shedding mechanism for both the ground and pile warps, a set of sheddable longitudinal pile gauges extending through the reed dents, shedding mechanism for the longitudinal pile gauges, a set of transverse pile wires on each side of the loom and means for individually inserting and Withdrawing one set of transverse wires over the longitudinal pile gauges and the other set under the longitudinal pile gauges.

3. In a loom having the combination set forth in claim 1, characterized by means for progressively advancing the longitudinal gauges during weaving.

4. In a pile fabric loom, a reed having dents, transverse pile wires having a cutting edge on one end thereof, transverse pile wires without a cutting edge, means for inserting and withdrawing all of said pile wires individually, a set of sheddable longitudinal pile gauges separating certain of the transverse wires into two planes within the fabric during weaving and shedding means for the longitudinal gauges.

5. In a pile fabric loom, a reed having dents, transverse pile wires having a cutting edge on one end thereof, transverse pile wires without a cutting edge, means for inserting and withdrawing all of said pile wires individually, a set of sheddable longitudinal pile gauges separating certain of the transverse wires into two planes during weaving, shedding means for the said longitudinal gauges and means for progressively advancing said longitudinal gauges within the fabric during weaving.

6. In a pile fabric loom, a reed having dents, a. set of transverse pile wires having a cutting edge on one end thereof on one side of the loom. a set of transverse pile wires without a cutting edge on the other side of the loom, means for inserting and withdrawing all of the said pile wires in both sets individually, a set of sheddable longitudinal pile gauges supporting the cutting wires in a plane spaced from the other pile wires within the fabric during weaving and shedding means for the longitudinal pile gauges.

'7. In the manufacture of pile fabric on a loom having a movable weft carrier, transverse pile wires and a set of longitudinal pile gauges extending through reed dents, the steps which comprise interweaving warp and weft threads to form a ground fabric, interlacing a pile-forming yarn with said ground, inserting a transverse wire over the longitudinal gauges and between the ground and the pile-forming yarn, looping said pileforming yarn about the transverse wire and then interlacing the pile-forming yarn with the ground.

8. In the manufacture of pile fabric on a loom having a movable weft carrier, transverse pile wires and a set of longitudinal 'pile gauges extending through reed dents, the steps which'com-v prise interweaving warp and weft threads to form a ground fabric, interlacing a pile-forming yarn with said ground, inserting a transverse wire over the longitudinal gauges and between the ground I a ground fabric, interlacing pile-formin yarns with said ground, inserting some of the transverse pilewires over the longitudinal gauges and between the ground and the pile-forming yarns, inserting others of the transverse pile wires under the longitudinal gauges and between the ground and the pile-forming yarns and looping some of the pile-forming yarns about the first-named pile wires and others of the pile-forming yarns about the last-named pile wires and securing the pileforming yarns after they have been looped about their respective transverse wires into the ground.

10. A process in accordance with claim 9 in which the yarns that are looped over transverse wires positioned over the longitudinal gauges are also looped over transverse wires below the longitudinal gauges.

11. In the manufacture of pile fabric having a ground, the steps which include positioning a bottom set of pile wires weft-wise of the fabric, an intermediate set of longitudinal gauges warpwise of the fabric, and a top set of pile wires weft-wise of the fabric, interlacing pile-forming warp yarns over individual transverse wires of one or both sets and securing said pile-forming yarns to the ground, whereby pile will be formed after withdrawal of the weft-wise pile wires.

12. In the manufacture of pile fabric having a ground, the steps which include positioning a bottom set of pile wires weft-wise of the fabric, an intermediate set of longitudinal gauges warpwise of the fabric, and a top set of pile wires weft-wise of the fabric, interlacing pile-forming warp yarns over weft-wise wires of each set and securing said pile-forming yarns to the ground whereby pile loops are formed and then cutting pile loops formed by the top set of weft-wise extending pile wires.

13. In the manufacture of pile fabric having a ground, the steps which include positioning a bottom set of pile wires weft-wise of the fabric, an intermediate set of longitudinal gauges warpwise of the fabric, and a top set of pilewires weftwise of the fabric, interlacing some of the pileforming warp yarns over weft-wise wires of one set and interlacing others of the pile-forming warp yarns over weft-wise wires of the other set 

